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Opening remarks by
Kenneth D. Wollack
President of the National Democratic Institute for International
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Emerging Democracies Forum
Sana'a, Yemen June 28-30, 1999
President Saleh, Prime Minister Al-Eryani, Prime Minister Geingob, distinguished participants, guests, and observers.
The Emerging Democracies Forum was first conceived over a year ago by Yemeni leaders, and NDI is proud to have
played a supporting role in helping to bring this idea to fruition.
Yemen, like other countries represented in this room has begun a democratic transition, demonstrating first and
foremost the universal appeal of democracy. This means understanding the cultural, social and economic barriers
to the development of democracy, but not accepting that these barriers are insurmountable.
The sheer diversity of the 16 countries represented at the Forum is a rebuttal to those who have claimed that democracy
is somehow alien to the inheritors of Spanish patriarchy, or Confucian thought or tribalism or Moslem belief or
any other tradition. Rather, democracy has been enriched by the contributions of many cultures.
These democratic transitions have also demonstrated the interconnectedness of economic and political development.
Reforestation, rural dislocation, environmental degradation and agricultural policies that have led to famine all
trace to political systems in which victims have no political voice, which government institutions feel no obligation
to answer to the people and which special interests feel free to exploit the resources, land and people without
fear of oversight or the need to account.
This conference is a demonstration that, in many seemingly unlikely places, the democratic experiment has begun.
However, the transition is not easy, nor is it complete or is the outcome assured.
The transition is not, cannot be, simple. By definition, democracies live in a state of creative crisis. They are
constantly reinventing themselves, testing their ability to meet new challenges. In contrast, dictatorships seem
to possess an unearthly stability. But that is just the point. A government with all the answers must ultimately
fail, or suppress those who expose its failures.
For the countries represented here, we recognize that the transition is made even harder because difficult economic
and political reforms are being carried out in relative isolation, with international attention and resources focused
elsewhere, either on so-called strategically important countries, or on crises situations.
The concept of this emerging democracies forum was to bring these type of countries together - from the Middle
East, Asia , Africa, Latin America, Eurasia and Europe - to share what they know, what they have experienced and
what they have learned.
It is our hope that the participants at this Emerging Democracies Forum, all political practitioners, will analyze
and address the common challenges faced in democratic transitions, discussing, in very practical terms, both the
significant achievements and daunting problems in building representative legislatures, transparent and accountable
government, politically active civic groups, and women's participation at all levels of politics and government.
The diversity of the democratic experience represented here by the government officials, parliamentary opposition
leaders, civic activists, and representatives of labor and business is more than a symbol. It also has practical
value. There is no one model for democracy, but rather, many models and many experiences. And as the community
of democracies has grown, democratic practice has become inseparable from democratic cooperation. The shared experiences
of democrats - our ability to help each other to become more democratic and stay democratic - is our secret weapon.
Autocrats do not have such a support network.
Because we rejoice in our common commitment to freedom and human rights we are fully committed to the expansion
of these goals to all of humanity. That is the cause that brings us together.
The Forum has been organized in a way that can produce good converstaion and practical discussion. The Forum itself
is a democratic experiment: we have limited speech-making; have promoted informal dialogue; and have chosen a location
that is not easy to get to and where there is not an abundance of luxuries to distract us. We have brought important
politicians together in the same room with grassroots civic activists, demonstrating that in this communication
age and increasingly interdependent world, politics are now more horizontal and contact just between governments
no longer dominate international relations.
We recognize that in organizing the Forum this way, we may run into the risk of offending some that are more accustomed
to protocol and podiums. If we do, I apologize but in the end, I believe we will have participated in something
unique.
Our work will not end with this conference. NDI plans to maintain this network through regional consultations,
exchange visits by individual experts, an interactive website and other mechanisms that will facilitate ongoing
transfers of ideas and experiences. Our challenge is to build upon the relationships established here.
In closing, I wanted to acknowledge those who truly have made this conference possible: Prime Minister Eryani whose
vision inspired the Forum; NDI's Middle East Director Leslie Campbell who managed to pull this all together against
all odds; NDI staff who have that rare quality of being both competent and friendly and probably is the only group
of people that is operating on less sleep than those who arrived last night from London; the supporters of the
conference who are listed on the banners behind me and in your folders - without their contributions, financial
and otherwise, this event simply would not have happened; the thousands of Yemenis who have watched a very unique
collection of people descend on their country and who have worked very hard to make us feel welcome; and finally,
Dr. Adbullaziz Al Saqqaf, a champion of democracy, freedom of the press and human rights. Dr. Al Saqqaf was tragically
killed in an automobile accident earlier this month, following a planning meeting for this Forum. He truly personified
the cause that brings us all together here.
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